Sourdough Carrot Cake Recipe with Cream Cheese Frosting
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This Sourdough Carrot Cake is super moist and bursting with warm spices, like ground cinnamon. Topped with homemade cream cheese frosting and made with sourdough discard, it’s one of our favorite cakes and super easy to make!
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Get ready to delight in this Sourdough Carrot Cake recipe with creamy cream cheese frosting. It’s a crowd-pleaser, bringing the whole family together to savor its moist, fluffy texture and irresistible flavor.
The best part? That decadent frosting adds a perfect touch of sweetness to every bite.
Made with freshly grated carrots and optionally topped with chopped pecans for extra crunch, it’s the perfect treat for any time of year.
Trust me, this recipe is a winner, offering a deliciously simple way to enjoy a classic favorite, now with a fun twist!
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Why You’ll Love This Recipe:
Easy to Make
This sweet treat is a breeze to make! Sift the drying ingredients, mix in with the wet ingredients, and bake.
Flavor
A moist cake full of warm spice and crunchy pecans, then topped with a smooth classic cream cheese frosting – it’s a winner every time!
Moist Cake
This Sourdough Carrot Cake is so delicious! Not only is the flavor of the cake incredible, but it is so moist and fluffy! Better yet, it will stay super moist for days on end.
Ingredients
Sourdough Carrot Cake
Flour – I used all-purpose flour for this Sourdough Carrot Cake recipe.
Leaveners – Since this recipe is made with leftover sourdough discard, we will need some leaveners to help the cake rise. Double-check that your baking soda and baking powder are not expired, otherwise, the cake will not rise properly.
Cinnamon – I love the warmth that ground cinnamon brings to this sourdough cake!
Salt – Any unrefined salt will do, but my favorite is Redmond’s unrefined salt for some extra minerals!
Sugar – I used white sugar for the recipe, but it can be substituted with cane sugar.
Oil – Adding vegetable oil to this cake batter makes it super moist and fluffy.
Sourdough Discard – Active sourdough starter or discard sourdough starter can be used for this recipe. I prefer to use sourdough discard that is no older than 2 weeks for sweet treats like this delicious dessert!
Eggs – Brings moisture and structure to the cake.
Grated Carrots – It is best to use fresh carrots and grate them yourself over pre-shredded carrots. I prefer the smaller size for texture and taste. To save time, grate the carrots the day before.
Pecans – I love a little bit of crunch in my Sourdough Carrot Cake, but this can be omitted if preferred.
Cream Cheese Frosting
Cream Cheese – For easy mixing, make sure that the cream cheese is at room temperature.
Confectioner’s Sugar – Brings the perfect sweetness to the frosting.
Butter – Just like the cream cheese, use softened butter for easy mixing. Unsalted or salted butter can be used.
Vanilla Extract – Use pure vanilla extract, rather than imitation vanilla, for the best flavor!
Supplies
Box grater or Food Processor
Stand Mixer or Electric Mixer
Cake pans
Wire rack
How to Make Sourdough Carrot Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
Sift flour, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt together in a large mixing bowl. Set this aside.
In a separate bowl, mix sugar and oil together in a stand mixer or with a hand mixer. Beat well.
Add leftover sourdough starter and mix until blended. Then add the eggs one at a time and beat until well combined.
Fold in shredded carrots with a wooden spoon or spatula.
Now, add the dry ingredients to the wet mixture a little bit at a time. Mix on low speed until smooth. Don’t overmix, otherwise the cake will be dense.
Lastly, fold in chopped pecans, if desired.
Grease and flour two circle cake pans. Split the cake batter evenly between both cake pans and bake for 26-28 minutes, or until the tops are golden brown and a toothpick comes out clean.
Place on a cooling rack and cool before topping with frosting.
Vanilla Cream Cheese Frosting
In a medium mixing bowl, mix cream cheese and butter until smooth.
Add 1/2 cup of the powdered sugar at a time and mix.
Lastly, add the vanilla and blend until combined.
How to Store
Store any leftover cake in the fridge in an airtight container or covered with plastic wrap or aluminum foil. Since it is super moist, it can last for up to 1 week.
FAQs:
Can I add nuts or raisins to the carrot cake?
Absolutely! The flavor and texture of nuts and raisins would be a wonderful addition to this Sourdough Carrot Cake. Fold in these additions to the wet ingredients at the very end.
Some variations might include – chopped pecans, chopped walnuts, pepitas, raisins, yellow raisings, and orange zest.
Can I use pre-shredded carrots for this recipe?
I would stick with grating your carrots. Store-bought julienned carrots tend to be too thick and don’t bake as well as freshly grated carrots.
If you are nervous about the carrots being too wet for the cake batter, shred your carrots the day before! This way some of the moisture can dry before you mix the ingredients the day of.
You can either shred the carrots by hand with a box grater or you can speed up the process by using a shredding blade on your food processor!
Can this cake be baked in a different-sized baking pan?
Yes! This cake can be baked in a 9×13 baking dish @ 350 for 45-50 minutes.
You can also turn this recipe into a cupcake recipe! Make Sourdough Carrot Cake Cupcakes by lining a muffin tin with cupcake liners, filling them 2/3rd of the way full, and baking them for 18-22 minutes!
Happy baking!
More Sourdough Discard Recipes Like This:
Sourdough Red Velvet Cake with Vanilla Buttercream Frosting
Moist Sourdough Pumpkin Sheet with Cream Cheese Frosting
Sourdough Lemon Cake with Lemon Buttercream Frosting
Sourdough Carrot Cake Recipe
This Sourdough Carrot Cake is super moist and bursting with warm spices, like ground cinnamon. Topped with homemade cream cheese frosting and made with sourdough discard, it is one of our favorite cakes and super easy to make!
Enter your email below, and we’ll send it straight to your inbox! Plus, you’ll get my newest sourdough recipes and best tips every week!
Ingredients
Sourdough Carrot Cake
- 2 cups all-purpose flour (280g)
- 2 teaspoons baking soda (10g)
- 2 teaspoons baking powder (6g)
- 2 teaspoons cinnamon (4g)
- 1/8 teaspoon salt (1g)
- 2 cups sugar (430g)
- 3/4 cup oil (155g)
- 1/2 cup sourdough discard (140g)
- 4 large eggs
- 3 cups carrots, grated
- 3/4 cup pecans, chopped (if desired)
Cream Cheese Frosting
- 8 ounces cream cheese, softened
- 3 1/2 cup powdered sugar
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
Instructions
1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
2. Sift 2 c (280g) flour, 2 tsp (10g) baking soda, 2 tsp (6g) baking powder, 2 tsp (4g) cinnamon, and 1/8 tsp (1g) salt together in a large mixing bowl. Set this aside.
3. In a separate bowl, mix 2 c (430g) sugar and 3/4 c (155g) oil together in a stand mixer or with a hand mixer. Beat well.
4. Add 1/2 c (140g) leftover sourdough starter and mix until blended. Then add the 4 eggs one at a time and beat until well combined.
5. Fold in 3 cups shredded carrots with a wooden spoon or spatula.
6. Now, add the dry ingredients to the wet mixture a little bit at a time. Mix on low speed until smooth.
7. Lastly, fold in 3/4 c chopped pecans, if desired.
8. Grease and flour 2 cake pans. Split the cake batter evenly between the two pans and bake for 26-28 minutes or until golden brown and a toothpick comes out clean.
9. Place on a cooling rack and cool before topping with frosting.
Vanilla Cream Cheese Frosting
10. In a medium mixing bowl, mix 8 oz cream cheese and 1/2 c (113g) butter until smooth.
11. Add 1/2 cup of the powdered sugar at a time, with a total of 3 1/2 c, and mix.
12. Lastly, add 2 tsp vanilla and blend until combined.
13. Once the cakes are at room temperature, cover with the frosting, decorate with more chopped pecans, slice, and enjoy!
Notes
How to Store
Store any leftover cake in the fridge in an airtight container or covered with plastic wrap or aluminum foil. Since it is super moist, it can last for up to 1 week.
FAQs:
Can I add nuts or raisins to the carrot cake?
Absolutely! The flavor and texture of nuts and raisins would be a wonderful addition to this Sourdough Carrot Cake. Fold in these additions to the wet ingredients at the very end.
Some variations might include - chopped pecans, chopped walnuts, pepitas, raisins, yellow raisings, and orange zest.
Can I use pre-shredded carrots for this recipe?
I would stick with grating your carrots. Store-bought julienned carrots tend to be too thick and don't bake as well as freshly grated carrots.
If you are nervous about the carrots being too wet for the cake batter, shred your carrots the day before! This way some of the moisture can dry before you mix the ingredients.
You can either shred the carrots by hand with a box grater or you can speed up the process by using a shredding blade on your food processor!
Can this cake be baked in a different-sized baking pan?
Yes! This cake can be baked in a 9x13 baking dish @ 350 for 45-50 minutes.
You can also turn this recipe into a cupcake recipe! Make Sourdough Carrot Cake Cupcakes by lining a muffin tin with cupcake liners, filling them 2/3rd of the way full, and baking them for 18-22 minutes!
